 |
| Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami |
Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), has written to the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF), Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), over the delay in the appointment of judges recommended by the National Judicial Council (NJC) for the Court of Appeal bench since last year.
Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, in his three-page letter dated January 23, 2018 but which a copy was obtained on Sunday, said inadequacy of Justices of the Court was contributing to the congestion of cases in the Court of Appeal.
A copy of the letter titled, ‘Appointment of Justices of the Court of Appeal – Need for urgent attention to approve appointees’ bore an acknowledgement stamp showing it was received at the AGF’s office on January 23.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) in November 2018 reportedly sent the names of 14 High Court judges to President Muhammadu Buhari for approval of their appointments to the Court of Appeal bench.
The proposed appointments were meant to fill vacancies accumulated as a result of retirements, elevations to the Supreme Court and deaths of Justices of the Court of Appeal over the years.
Chief Adegboyega Awomolo said in his letter to the AGF that delays in the hearing and disposal of cases in the Court of Appeal were partly due to insufficient number of Justices.
He said the frustration of litigants and their lawyers as a result of the delays in the hearing and determination of their cases at the appeals court had reached an unbearable point.
He asked Malami to impress it on the President the need to expedite action on the approval of the appointments of the recommended judges to the Court of Appeal bench.
The letter read in part, “The process of approval of appointment, with respect, is a mere formality. In view of all these and the continual delay and frustration, we practitioners and our clients urge that you exercise the powers of your office to bring the delay and invaluable frustration of Nigerians to the approving authority so that approval of the candidates recommended to be appointed to the court can be given the attention it deserves.”
Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, in his three-page letter dated January 23, 2018 but which a copy was obtained on Sunday, said inadequacy of Justices of the Court was contributing to the congestion of cases in the Court of Appeal.
A copy of the letter titled, ‘Appointment of Justices of the Court of Appeal – Need for urgent attention to approve appointees’ bore an acknowledgement stamp showing it was received at the AGF’s office on January 23.
The National Judicial Council (NJC) in November 2018 reportedly sent the names of 14 High Court judges to President Muhammadu Buhari for approval of their appointments to the Court of Appeal bench.
The proposed appointments were meant to fill vacancies accumulated as a result of retirements, elevations to the Supreme Court and deaths of Justices of the Court of Appeal over the years.
Chief Adegboyega Awomolo said in his letter to the AGF that delays in the hearing and disposal of cases in the Court of Appeal were partly due to insufficient number of Justices.
He said the frustration of litigants and their lawyers as a result of the delays in the hearing and determination of their cases at the appeals court had reached an unbearable point.
He asked Malami to impress it on the President the need to expedite action on the approval of the appointments of the recommended judges to the Court of Appeal bench.
The letter read in part, “The process of approval of appointment, with respect, is a mere formality. In view of all these and the continual delay and frustration, we practitioners and our clients urge that you exercise the powers of your office to bring the delay and invaluable frustration of Nigerians to the approving authority so that approval of the candidates recommended to be appointed to the court can be given the attention it deserves.”
In this article: